It’s all about the Journey

I am useless, I’m not a good rider, I will never improve, my horse does not deserve to put up with me, I might as well give up, I’m wasting my husbands/parents/my money.

If you have never had any or all of these thoughts at some stage during your riding career, well I envy you!

Dressage is not easy, there are constant debates on every social network and website over the right way, and the wrong way and what to do and how to sit, and what it should look like or feel like, or at what time you should achieve this or that.

As dressage riders we are quite often perfectionists, and while most of us get so much true enjoyment from our riding, we also often place expectations on ourselves as to what we want to achieve.

For some it might be the Olympics, for others it might be to just be able to feel good in the saddle, or feel that our horse is understanding us.

Whatever the goal, we all reach certain points in our journey, that make us reassess where we are at.

During these times we often face one, or all of the above thoughts, and it is often very hard not to transfer this energy onto our horse.

Of course we know that none of the above thoughts actually help us, but sometimes is just takes someone else to remind us what it is all about.

So that’s what this is…a reminder!

Do you treat your horse with compassion? Do you love him? Do you look after him and feed him, and provide him with his daily needs?

Do you strive every day to work with him not against him, to not force or harm him unintentionally?

Do you treat your horse with compassion? Do you love him? Do you look after him and feed him, and provide him with his daily needs?

Do you strive every day to work with him not against him, to not force or harm him unintentionally?

If you can honestly answer yes to all these questions then the only thing you really need to decide is do you love it?

Does it change you as a person, is it your reason for getting up in the morning, and quite often the last thing you think about at night?

If you can honestly answer yes to all these questions then the only thing you really need to decide is do you love it?

Does it change you as a person, is it your reason for getting up in the morning, and quite often the last thing you think about at night?

If it is, then all the rest is rubbish, because whether or not you achieve your goal, you will discover yourself, and the meaning of life, in the journey.